Small and medium-sized firms' restructuring procedures. US law, EU law and national transpositions

After discussing the socio-economic reasons that could provide grounds for a special attention to the restructuring of small and medium-sized enterprises as opposed to larger companies, the article dwells on the analysis of EU Directive 2019/1023, that shows a precise legal policy designed to recognise that such specific reasons justify a different organisation of intervention measures, based on the principle of proportionality. The ways in which these suggestions of the Directive have been transposed at the national level in several European countries are then examined. The article concludes with a focus on the Italian and United States regulations: the former, although apparently incorporating the insights from the Directive, still adopts a one-size-fits-all approach; the latter, on the other hand, shows a clearer distinction between the regime governing the restructuring of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and that applicable to larger companies. The article observes that, despite a commendable European regulatory framework, significant heterogeneity persists among national regulations. It also critiques certain choices made by the Italian legal system while proposing interpretative solutions to address these issues